Antonelli becomes youngest F1 world champion as Verstappen wins in Mexico

Andrea Kimi Antonelli has become the youngest world champion in Formula 1 history. The Mercedes driver sealed the title on Sunday 1 November 2026 by finishing third in the Mexico City Grand Prix. Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the race.

Vettel's record broken

On the day he won the title, the Italian was 20 years and 68 days old. The previous record belonged to Sebastian Vettel, who won the first of his four titles in 2010 aged 23 years and 134 days. Antonelli became champion in only his second season in F1.

A ninth-place finish in Mexico would have been enough. Before the race he led second-placed George Russell, his Mercedes team-mate, by 123 points. He secured the title with four rounds of the season remaining.

Antonelli is only the third Italian world champion in F1, after Giuseppe Farina (1950) and Alberto Ascari (1952, 1953). He took the lead in the standings after the third round of the season, when he won the Chinese and Japanese Grands Prix in succession. After the summer break he added wins in Italy, Spain and Austin.

How the race unfolded

The race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City was eventful. According to Polish sports outlets, Ferrari lost its chance of victory right after the start, when Charles Leclerc ruined his race. Verstappen benefited. Lewis Hamilton finished second. During the race there was a serious incident: Oscar Piastri hit Arvid Lindblad while overtaking and sent him into the barriers, which led to another restart.

Standings after the Mexico City Grand Prix

After 19 rounds of the 2026 season, Antonelli has 380 points. Verstappen is second with 261 points, having moved ahead of Hamilton (259 points) and Russell. Russell was recently second in the championship and now has ground to make up on both rivals.